Reproduction (Ch 42a) Flashcards
Define asexual reproduction.
When an individual produces offspring by itself, via mitosis and budding//fission.
What are the dis/advantages of asexual reproduction?
Advantage: Quick reproduction, less energy. more efficient.
Disadvantage: Less genetic diversity.
Define sexual reproduction.
When the offspring are produced via the union of haploid male and female gametes.
What are the dis/advantages of sexual reproduction?
Advantage: Genetic diversity; promotes survival
Disadvantage: Requires two parents; takes time and energy; produces fewer offspring.
Exchange of sperm and egg may follow two pathways: _____ and _____.
External and internal pathways.
Define External fertilization. What is the disadvantage?
A male organism’s sperm fertilizing a female organism’s egg outside of the female’s bod
-Disadvantage: a reliance on water and the large amount of wasted sperm and eggs that never reach a corresponding gamete.
Define Internal fertilization.
The union of an egg cell with a sperm during sexual reproduction inside the body of a parent.
Advantages of internal fertilization.
Protecting the fertilized egg from dehydration on land
Define testes.
Where sperm production takes place.
Define epididymis.
Surrounds the testes.
Define seminal vesicle.
A pair of tube-like glands that holds the liquid that mixes with sperm to form semen.
The male reproductive system is specialized for the _____ and the _____ of sperm.
production and delivery.
Define the sperm.
Sperm are specialized cells with minimal cytoplasm, a densely packed nucleus, an acrosome with digestive enzymes, and a flagellum.
What do acrosomes contain?
They contain enzymes that are used by sperm to transverse the outer coating of the egg.
Where are the testes located?
Outside the abdominal cavity in a sac called the scrotum.
